


Jumping Jacks

by dancingdriver



Category: Gilmore Girls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:01:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24290986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancingdriver/pseuds/dancingdriver
Summary: Thanksgiving is almost here and Rory has a tough call to make.—||—Post AYINTL. Rory and Logan deserved better.
Relationships: Rory Gilmore/Logan Huntzberger
Comments: 5
Kudos: 41





	Jumping Jacks

Telling her mother was easy. She had found out a couple of days before, and the secret night wedding was so magical that she felt it was the right time. She saw the slightest disappointment mixed in with surprised look her mother gave her. That was easy, the conversation that came after not so much. She hadn’t told anyone else, so having to avoid drinking during the wedding reception and having to skip 90% of her regular daily dose of coffee since then was not easy. Even though her mother was still sad and a bit mad about it, she was taking double doses of coffee to help her hide it from everybody else. She could not bring herself to tell anyone else before she told him, and how that would go she had no idea and that terrified her. 

Lorelai bulldozed her with questions, and what if’s and how’s. Why was she having an affair with an engaged Logan, why would she give up all her hard work like this, how could she be this irresponsible, what if he didn’t want anything to do with the baby, what if his family decided to take the baby from her. How would she do this? How would she raise a baby alone? She reminded her mother that she wasn’t 16. She wasn’t Lorelai Gilmore, well, technically she was but she was not 16 and she knew deep down she wouldn’t be alone. She had her village. And him...?

—||—

It was the weekend before Thanksgiving and because she didn’t know if she should call or if he could (would?) pick up she decided to write him an email first. She knew this had to be done in person and probably he would be home for the holiday, it was perfect timing. So she wrote him a quick email, saying writing was going well, how was London?, and that she’d like to talk to him on the phone if he didn’t mind to give her a call. That was Friday night, it was already Wednesday and she hadn’t gotten a reply, text or call. Had he changed his email? Or blocked her? She started to get worried and go through scenarios in her mind on how to contact him. The phone rang while she was debating on wether to call Colin or Finn to get a new contact. 

“Hey Ace, everything okay?”

She froze at the sound of his voice. “H-hi Logan. Everything’s good, thank you. How about you?”

“All good Ace, all good. Sorry I didn’t call you earlier, I don’t check my emails during the weekend and had a pretty crazy start of the week. You said you wanted to talk...” had she decided she wanted the house to write after all?

“Yeah, no problem. Just... ahm, wanted to know if you’re home for Thanksgiving?”

That was a weird question. They had never met during holidays before. They had said their goodbyes... what was going on? “Actually no, I’m not, not an English holiday so I don’t have the time off, you know?”

“Right, right... of course.” What should she do now, tell him on the phone? That was not the plan. She wanted to do it in person... 

“Rory, are you still there? What, are the boys giving you trouble? We agreed with custody for Thanksgiving with you and Christmas with me, right?” He knew something was wrong, that she was not okay, maybe a joke would help her relax. He heard her laugh on the other side of the line.

That joke relaxed her but her heart tightened a bit. This would probably be a real conversation that they would have to have really soon. She took a big breath and closed her eyes. Ok, bandaid off. “Logan, I’m pregnant.” There. It was done. “I wanted to tell you in person, but you’re not coming for Thanksgiving and I didn’t think I should wait any longer. This is crazy, I know. So, we can talk on the phone but i’d like to sit with you in person and talk about his. I can do it alone Logan, you don’t have to be involved if you don’t want to, I...”

“Rory.” 

She hadn’t noticed she was rambling and that he was quiet for a long time.

“Rory.”

“I’m sorry to spring this on you. I don’t want to mess up with your life. I-I’m sorry...”

“Rory. Can I talk now?”

“Yeah... sorry...”

“Okay, first, please stop apologizing. You did nothing wrong.”

“I slept with you. You are engaged.”

“Yeah, I am engaged, you are not.”

“But...”

“Rory, it’s my turn to talk. First, have you been to the doctor? Is everything okay with you and the baby? When did you find out?”

“I went to the doctor this week. Everything’s fine. I found out almost a month ago.”

“You’ve known for a month? And you waited all this time to tell me?” He was getting angry and this was not the way to go about this. “You are right, we have to talk in person. I can’t fly out before Christmas, but I’ll fly out early so we can meet and talk, okay? I’ll text you the details. Please keep me updated about anything. I can ask Honor the contact of her doctor if you’d like.”

“No, that’s okay Logan, I have a doctor. Please don’t tell Honor, not yet. We have to talk first. I haven’t told anyone besides my mother.”

“Okay, I won’t tell anyone. See you at Christmas?”

“Yes, Christmas.” She was desapointed, she thought she could do this before. Again London and Christmas, what a deja vu.

“Ok, Christmas. But Rory, please call me anytime if you need anything. Or if you are going to the doctor. Anything.”

“Uhm, yeah, I’ll let you know. Bye Logan.”

“Bye Ace.” He hung up the call with a smile on his face. A baby. With Rory. His baby with Rory. He had so much to think about and prepare for. He had to talk to his family and to Odette. There were two shitstorms waiting to happen, maybe he could do it only once? He hated that he couldn’t fly right away to be with her but he had work up to his eyes until the week before Christmas. Why hadn’t he taken Thanksgiving off?

Rory sat with the phone on her hand for a while contemplating her new life. What if he wanted nothing to do with them? She knew he had a family obligation to fulfill with his marriage and she wound never make him step out of it, but she wanted him to be a father to their baby. Boy, they fucked up. They fucked up big time. She knew he didn’t love his fiancé and she didn’t love her boyfriend but that was no excuse to cheat. What a fucked up situation they were bringing a baby into. 

—||—

She was quite content for a few days, but almost two weeks had passed and she hadn’t heard anything from him. She was doing okay and had no doctors visits so she hadn’t contacted him either. But Christmas was around the corner and he hadn’t sent any more details and she was getting worried. Should she take the first step and ask about it? She didn’t have to call him, an email would be okay...

So she sat at her desk to write him an email. She wrote and deleted drafts at least 30 times before setting on what to send him.

“Hi Logan, sorry to bother you but we’re going to Nantucket to spend Christmas with my Grandmother and I just wanted to check if we would still be able to meet? We’re driving out on the 22nd, and we’ll be back the 28th. If you are home around those days let me know and we can set up something. 

Logan, you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I mean it. I can handle it on my own and you don’t have to mess with any of your plans. It’s okay.”

She hit send and felt a calmness surrounding her. She wanted him to be a father to this baby, but, if he couldn’t or we wouldn’t it would be ok. She could do it. She had the best example in her mother and she knew she was capable of everything. There was a sadness in it though, more than anything she wanted to give her baby a relationship with their father, something she never really had. 

It was the day before his flight, finally. He had been working non-stop since Rory’s call in late November so he could be done for the year and travel as early as possible. That’s when her email came. He knew he messed up not keeping in touch but between work and all the events that he had to attend during holiday times it was impossible. He kicked himself for not taking a few minutes a week to text her just to ask how everything was going. But that last paragraph enraged him. How could she think he didn’t want to be there for her, for them? She had to know that nothing was more important besides them, right? He hadn’t yet broken off the engagement. He needed time and a plan. Going against the Hunzbergers was never an easy task, and breaking off the engagement was more about his family than about his fiancé. How sad was that. How had he gotten himself into this mess? He knew he was too upset to call Rory so instead he replied her email.

“Hey Ace, I should be apologizing for not staying in touch and letting you know my plans. I was trying to finish off the work for the year since you called me so I could fly back as soon as possible and I didn’t know when that would be until today. I’m flying back tomorrow. I will land late but we can meet the day after for breakfast. There’s a new diner in Hartford that reminds me of Luke’s, I think you’ll like it, it’s called The Flying Mug. Is 9am ok for you?

See you soon, Ace.”

—||—

The day had come and here she was, sitting in her car looking into the window of The Flying Mug. She spotted him right away and a chill went down her spine. This was it. This is where everything would be decided. She went in with all the confidence in the world. She could do this, with or without him. 

“Hey.”

“Hi Rory, how are you?”

“How formal.” She mocked him a little. “I’m fine, and you?”

“Better now. So. You are pregnant.”

“Yes, yes I am.”

“Is everything fine, really? How good’s your doctor?”

“Logan, everything is fine and my doctor is good.” Her voice was so calm that his nervousness dissipated a little.

“Ok, and what is the plan now?”

“Plan? What do you mean plan?” Was he implying something? Did he want her to disappear, did he not want to know his baby?

“I don’t know Rory, I’ve never done this. What do two people do when they are having a baby? Well, usually they are married or at least together, and we’re not, so... what is your plan?”

“I-I don’t have a plan... I was hoping we would make one. Together. I don’t mean together, together... I mean... “ her calm and confidence had went right down the drain that exact moment.

“You don’t have a plan? You, Rory Gilmore, don’t have a plan? Not even a pro-con list?” He smiled at her. He knew she had went over a million scenarios in her head.

She laughed at his jab. “Yes, I have a pro-con list. Pro: I’m having a baby. Con: I’m having a baby. That was pretty much what I got.” She was smiling again.

“Oh, come on Ace, I know there is more than that... what do you want to do?”

“Well, it’s not about only me anymore... what I want kind of falls to the bottom of the list now. I’d like for you to have a relationship with the baby. I don’t want him or her to have what I had with my father. I don’t want you to be in only when you want.”

“Rory, I would never do that...” he’s eyes fell and she could feel the sadness in him.

“Yeah, I know that, but there’s the wedding... I don’t want to come in the middle of that.”

“You’re not in the middle of it. There’s nothing to be in the middle of. That was a mistake. That is a business transaction outlined by my father. That’s not what I want. There is nothing that would come between us like that. Me and a child, I mean.” 

“And your family. They will hate me. They will doubt me...”

“Rory, I don’t care about my family. You and the baby are my family now. No matter what. You will always come first over anything.”

“You never asked...”

“Asked what?” What was she talking about? He went over all their encounters in the last couple of years, was there a window he lost somehow? Was he supposed to ask her to be with him officially? Vegas was her ideia, she never expressed otherwise...

“If it’s yours...” the moment she uttered those words she felt the disappointment in his eyes.”

“Rory, seriously? I know you wouldn’t do that. You wouldn’t lie or tell me if you weren’t sure. Why would you ask me that?” 

There was an awkward silence and they were both looking out the window avoiding each other. How could they come back from this?

He turned is eyes back on her and started the conversation back up. “Look, I’ve never seen you so scarce with words since I met you so here’s what I think, and you can let me know what you think about it, ok?” She nodded.

“Me and Odette, it’s over. It will be over. It makes no sense, we don’t love each other. It was my father’s idea and it will stop now. I should never have let it get this far. I thought my chances with you were done. Vegas and all. You rejected my proposal all those years ago and had the idea for Vegas... I... I thought that’s all you wanted. That that was the only way I could have you in my life. It was not fair to Odette, it was stupid to let it all go on for so long. But it will be over. I want to be with you, Rory, by your side, always. Not only has a father to the baby, but as your partner. But it’s up to you. I don’t want to put any pressure on it, I won’t make any ultimatums. I promise. I will be there for whatever you need, in whatever status you want. But I will be there. This is my baby as much as it is yours. I want to be involved. Since we spoke on the phone I spent some time also planning how to come back to the States. But I don’t know where you’re standing, where you will be living, I don’t want to be too far away so I need to know your plans so I can look into job options around you. Is that okay?”

“Yes, of course. But I don’t want to be a burden on you, Logan... you don’t have to be close to me, we can arrange for...”

“It’s not close to you, it’s close to the baby. I don’t want to miss out on anything, Rory. I won’t be my father. Or your father. I won’t.”

“Okay. Well, now I’m just back at my mom’s, writing the book, no other plans. But i keep my contacts up to date if some position or job comes along. I don’t really have a long term plan...”

“That’s fine. I can be around here. We can think long term later. “

“And your family?”

“What about my family?”

“How do you think they will react? Do you think they’d want to make me and the baby go away, or... or... take the baby?”

“Rory, I would never let either of those things happen. I’m here, I will be here and this is my decision. I can make it out of the family business. I did it once and I can do it again, what my family thinks is not my concern. You are my family now, I told you that. How did your mother react?”

She felt better hearing that. She knew he was serious about it, that he’d go against the world to be present. Her fears had almost vanished. “She didn’t take it so well... but she’s coming around to it. We haven’t talked much... I didn’t want to let it slip around other people before talking to you, so we didn’t talk...”

“She will come around, Ace, you know that. We’re not 16, and I’m not your father... “ he felt bad for bashing her father but he’d never do what he did. Not to Rory. Not to his kid.

“I know. I’ll tell my grandmother and Luke over Christmas so she will for sure need to back me up with Grandma... how about telling your parents? Should we do it together or....”

Here was the hard part. Her family was a walk in the park compared to his. He didn’t know the best way to go over it. Not yet. “Honestly Ace, I don’t know. I thought about it and I’m not sure what my course of action should be. I haven’t seen them yet so I need to test the waters first. Maybe I’ll talk to Honor to get her help. It will be done before I fly back. I...” he suddenly stopped and looked at her.

“What? I know you have work in London, Logan, I don’t expect you to drop everything in a second...”

“It’s not that. I have to tell Odette also. She’s coming for Christmas... I... this needs to be done in person but having her fly out here to get the news... I don’t know what to do.”

“I think you should talk to Honor, she knows your family, she’ll know what to do. And about Odette... I’m sorry I’m putting you in this situation, you do what you think is best. I don’t have an answer for it either...”

“You didn’t put me in this situation, Ace, we both did. I have a couple of days anyway. I’ll talk to Honor today and draw a plan. It’s going to be okay.”

“So... we’re doing this?”

“We’re doing this, Ace.”

They both smiled timidly, they knew whatever the obstacles they’d have to overcome, they’d come on top. They’d make this work. Logan put is hands on the table, arms stretched and palms up.

“You jump, I jump?”

“You jump, I jump Jack.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it! This is my first GG fic, it just came to my mind after going over the worm whole that is binge watching Rory+Logan because of quarantine and these weird times we live in...
> 
> I’m terrible at titles, suggestions for improvement are appreciated
> 
> Reviews are always welcome :)


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